


Hold On

by Hi_Im_Lou



Category: RoadTrip (Band), Roadtrip TV
Genre: Angst, Description of Injuries, Highschool AU, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Multi, OT5 Relationship, Rye centric, first ever RT fic, not a doctor but am working off first aid knowledge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-31
Updated: 2019-07-31
Packaged: 2020-07-27 20:27:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,291
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20052061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hi_Im_Lou/pseuds/Hi_Im_Lou
Summary: A rumour spreading around the school leads to accusations, hurts and hospital stays.





	Hold On

**Author's Note:**

> This is sort of a song fic inspired by Hold On by Chord Overstreet. Recommend listening to the song to help get a feel for the fic (and it's a good song)
> 
> This is my first major piece of writing in a very long time so please be kind, and it's my first RoadTrip fic so I'm trying

Sonny sat with his head in his hands. The day had started off so perfectly and yet now he was sat in a hospital waiting room listening to his boyfriends crying and pacing the linoleum floors like they were training for a marathon. He looked to his left, seeing Jack curled into Andy's side tightly, eyes red rimmed and still shiny with unshed tears.

The youngest boy was holding his knees to his chest, cheek pressed firmly against where Andy's chest and shoulder met. The blonde boy had one arm wrapped tightly around Jack's shoulders, the other gripping his phone tightly as he was texting furiously.

Sonny sighed and looked up and to the right, watching Brooklyn complete another four laps of the small waiting area they'd been given for privacy before getting to his feet. He grabbed Brook's wrist as he passed him, pulling the unresisting boy into a bone crushing hug as heart wrenching sobs suddenly burst from his chest. Sonny couldn't help but start crying again as well, guiding Brook to sit with their other boyfriends so they could comfort each other.

As Brook's cries quieted, Sonny gazed at the ceiling and again wondered how the day went so wrong.

_Loving and fighting_

_Accusing, denying_

_I can't imagine a world with you gone_

_The joy and the chaos_

_The demons we're made of_

_I'd be so lost if you left me alone_

Jack grinned as he watched Rye and Andy pushing each other playfully on their way to football practise. He laughed fondly as Andy took a step back, only to then launch himself at Rye's back, the taller boy catching him easily and piggybacking him the rest of the way to the field. Looking back at Brook and Sonny, he gestured with his head in the direction of the library and the two older boys followed him.

The building was surprisingly busy for a Wednesday afternoon, but Jack assumed from looking at the occupants that most were waiting for the school's football team to finish training for the day so they could all go home.

A group of stereotypical nerds were sat quietly in one corner, each having some form of fantasy novel in their hands aside from the two going through a science magazine together.

A couple of students with headphones clamped over their ears were frantically revising for something, Jack recognised a few faces from his history class and he suddenly remembered the test he had on Friday with a painful whiplash of temporary panic. Oh well, Andy had the same test and was good at history, he could help him. 

A gaggle of teenage girls in the year below them were giggling over social media, from what Jack could see of their phones they were going through the whole football teams' Instagram accounts. Rolling his eyes, he laughed to Brook and Sonny when one of them gushed over Rye's latest post. Little did they know they had zero chance of anything happening.

Sonny had claimed a table towards the back of the room, alongside another table filled with others in their year. Brook already had his notebook out, frustratedly tugging at his hair as he looked over his maths homework. Strolling over, Jack slumped down next to the blonde, tugging the homework sheet so they could both see.

"We'll get through this together, yeah?"

Brook couldn't help but give Jack an incredibly fond smile. "I love you."

Jack kissed his nose. "Love you too."

Sonny watched his boyfriend's sappy display, smiling warmly until the conversation behind him piqued his interest. Trying not to be obvious, he shifted in his seat so he could better hear the gossiping popular girls.

"Oh my god, did you hear Sienna actually kissed Rye Beaumont?"

"No way, football captain Rye Beaumont?"

"That's what she said!"

"No way, he's always way too busy with music and football and his mates, how'd she do that?"

The brunette girl sounded sceptical and by now Sonny had nudged Brook and Jack, their attention now on the table next to them rather than trigonometric equations.

"She said it was after second period on Monday, they were just leaving the chemistry lab and he asked if he could borrow her notes since Dylan had spilled stuff over his book. And to say thanks he kissed her!"

Jack and Sonny shared a concerned look; that was a lot of detail for a rumour. Brook on the other hand was scowling, Rye definitely wouldn't kiss anyone that wasn't one of his four boyfriends, and he would've been ridiculously grumpy at their lunch table if his book had been ruined by chemicals.

"Are you sure Sienna wasn't lying, you know she's had a crush on Rye since like forever."

"Well Kayla and Molly said the same thing, why would they lie for her?"

"True. Oh my god! I can't believe it! Hey, did you hear that Miss Johnson and Mr Clayton were-"

The boys tuned out the rest of the conversation, not caring about anything other than the apparent fact that Rye had kissed someone who wasn't them. Homework shoved back in bags, the three boys quickly left the library and headed outside.

There was a shaded patch of grass under a large oak tree just outside the fence which sectioned off the playing field from the rest of the school ground. It had a lovely view of the team training, the boys normally enjoying the nice weather there while watching Rye and Andy absolutely boss their training. Feelings weren't so cheery after what they'd heard.

"You don't think it's true, do you?" Brook asked quietly, leaning his back against the tree.

"I don't want to but that's a hell of an accusation to make. Sienna's got a lot of backlash and embarrassment if anyone calls her out."

Sonny hummed thoughtfully at Jack's comment, "That, and everyone knows that Molly doesn't like Sienna, she only puts up with her because Kayla and Sienna have been friends since they were like two. Why would Molly support something Sienna said?"

"Are you guys seriously thinking that Rye cheated on us?" Brook couldn't hide his shock, his brows furrowed and mouth drawn into a tight line.

Jack's eyes teared up at the word 'cheated' and he looked at Brook sadly. "He  was distant with us on Monday, maybe it was guilt?"

"But he was fine Tuesday!" Brooklyn argued, crossing his arms.

"Yeah but he was also on his phone all day and wouldn't let anyone see the screen, not even Andy. He was the same at breakfast this morning, he barely said anything." Sonny added, his own eyes now shiny with tears.

Brook sniffled, hugging himself tighter. Part of him so didn't want to believe that Rye could have kissed that girl, but when the others put it that way, and what with someone who actively disliked the girl even supporting the story it was hard not to feed into the rumour.

The three boys sat in silence, Jack having pulled Sonny closer so the three were all leaning against one another with legs tangled. Time passed quickly and before they knew it a shrill whistle from the field brought them out of their thoughts. They looked over and saw the team making their way back towards the locker rooms, patting each other on the back but even from a distance they could see Rye's surprised and confused face when Andy didn't wait for him.

Getting to their feet, they made their way to the benches near the car park on the side with the gym exit. They'd normally wait for their boys after training but today the bitter taste in their mouths made it uncomfortable. Andy quickly overtook the rest of the team, scowl on his face and jaw clenched tightly, but his eyes softened briefly with a knowing sadness when he caught sight of the three of them huddled together on one bench. He smiled gently and then left to the locker room.

The rest of the team trailed after the blonde boy, two hanging back with Rye as one of them clapped him on the shoulder and congratulated him jokingly. Sonny and Jack couldn't look at him but Brook saw the confusion cross Rye's face at the cheer before he frowned at his boyfriends who didn't offer even a small nod of acknowledgement. Brooklyn watched Rye's face fall further before the mask came back up and he followed the team inside.

Andy was furious. He slammed his fist against his locker, taking several deep breaths before straightening back up as he heard the rest of the team shuffle their way into the changing room. The other boys were all laughing and joking, bantering over missed shots and awful passes as well as commiserating over failed tests and painful homework assignments. Andy got changed as quickly as he could, not even bothering to shower like he normally would.

A soft hand, one he could recognise anywhere, rested on his bicep, slowing his rushed movements. Andy's eyes locked onto concerned brown ones staring at him. He felt his eyes fill with hurt as he shrugged the hand from his arm aggressively.

Luckily most of the team had already collected their things and shouted their goodbyes to the rest of the room. It wasn't until Andy was sure that he and Rye were alone that he whirled round to face the younger boy with a harsh glare.

"What the actual fuck Ryan?!"

Rye looked genuinely shocked, Andy would give him that.

"What?"

"What do you mean 'what?' How about you kissing Sienna Thompson, does that sound familiar?"

Rye's eyebrows furrowed immediately.

"What do you mean me kissing Sienna Thompson? I never did that, the only people I ever kiss are you, Brook, Jack and Sonny. Where the hell is this coming from?" Rye took a step closer to Andy, to try and calm his enraged boyfriend down but the blonde stepped back.

"Then want to tell me why that seemed to be the only topic of discussion during drills just now?"

"Fovvs, I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. Who said I kissed Sienna?" Rye looked close to tears and for some inexplicable reason it made something inside Andy snap.

"Don't play innocent Beaumont! Half the school is talking about it now and the rest will say it tomorrow. We always knew you were a flirt but we didn't think you were a cheat. Shows how wrong we were! I can't believe you're even going to try and deny it! Sienna's one of the most popular girls in school, why the hell would she risk the embarrassment of lying about making out with the football captain? You know what, I don't even wanna hear it. Fuck you, fuck Sienna, fuck off and stay away from me and the boys. We're done with you!"

With that Andy grabbed his bag and stormed from the locker room. He didn't see the shell shocked expression on Rye's face or the tears streaming down his cheeks.

_You locked yourself in the bathroom_

_Lying on the floor when I break through_

_I pull you in to feel your heartbeat_

_Can you hear me screaming please don't leave me?_

The three boys sat silently on the bench, leaning against each others' shoulders for support. They watched as the football team left one by one until they were sure it was only Rye and Andy left in the changing room. All was quiet before they could hear shouting. It wasn't clear what was being said, but it was definitely clear that Andy was almost screaming at Rye.

Brook winced as Andy reached a borderline shrill pitch before a locker slammed and they heard clear as day, "Fuck you, fuck Sienna, fuck off and stay away from me and the boys. We're done with you!"

Only a few seconds later the door swung open and a red faced Andy was stalking towards them. He paused briefly, taking in their devastated faces before he gently grasped Jack and Sonny's hands, pulling them after him. Sonny went to grab Brook's hand with his free one but the blonde stepped away.

"I need to talk to him. Go, I'll catch up with you later, promise." He gave the taller boy a reassuring but sad smile and Sonny returned it before trailing after Jack and Andy.

Brooklyn sat back down on the bench, elbows rested on his knees and head down. He took a deep breath and waited for Rye to come out of the locker room.

Ten minutes, twenty minutes, over half an hour later and Rye still hadn't emerged from the blue double doors. Brook checked his phone and saw the missed call from Jack and several texts from Jack, Andy, Sonny and even his mother. Looking up at the sudden sound, Brook frowned as he saw three other members of the football team coming out of the gym. He could've sworn that only Rye and Andy had been left in there and something in his veins froze.

He pretended to be immersed in a phone conversation as the group passed him, but he still caught sight of the red coating all six sets of knuckles. He felt a weight drop like a brick in his stomach, rushing to yank open the changing room doors as soon as the other teenagers were gone.

Rushing through the rows of lockers, Brook felt panic well within him when he couldn't find Rye. His bag was still on the bench and his belongings were untouched but what really caught his attention were the droplets of blood leading to the toilets. Swallowing down his sudden nausea, Brook followed the trail and tried the handle. It was locked.

"Rye?"

No answer.

"Rye?! Are you in there?!"

A quiet groan that Brook strained his ears to pick up on.

"Rye, come on, open the door! You're freaking me out! I promise I'm not mad about the Sienna thing I want to talk."

When that statement received a pained whimper in response, Brook thought ' _fuck_ _it_ ' and stepped back. He kicked at the door and felt it give a little, so he tried again. As soon as the door swung open the blonde really had to fight down the urge to be sick.

There, in the middle of the floor lying in a pool of his own blood, was his boyfriend. With no hesitation, Brook pulled his phone out and was dialling for an ambulance as he dropped to his knees beside Rye. His free hand fluttered over Rye's body, unsure of where to touch, if to touch, while he rambled down the line to the emergency services. Reassured that an ambulance was on its way, Brook set his phone aside and started to really take a look at Rye's injuries.

Ringed bruises were forming around his wrists and upper arms, clearly from being restrained by someone, a similar ring was blossoming around Rye's throat and it made Brook himself choke a little. Rye's nose was clearly broken, one eye already swollen shut and the other turning a dark red to soon become an inky purple-black. From the way Rye was curled onto his side, Brook could only assume that he was guarding bruised if not broken ribs, and he could see the bloody puncture marks on Rye's bare legs where studded football boots had targeted. Most concerning was the sluggishly bleeding laceration to the side of Rye's head just behind his right ear, scarlet matting the soft brown hairs together. A glance at the sinks and Brook's stomach lurched as he mentally pieced together what had happened. His boyfriend had been brutally attacked by his own teammates, and from the dampness covering Rye's head and shoulders and the trail of water leading from a toilet cubicle they didn't just leave it at physical, they had to humiliate him as well. Just as his fury was rising at the mistreatment Rye had suffered, a pained groan from the boy on his lap cooled it right down.

"B- Brook?"

"Yeah Rye, yeah baby it's me, I'm here."

Rye blinked rapidly, trying to focus beyond the headache on Brooklyn's face above him. "M'sorry, m'sorry, swear... swear didn't kiss her, would never, love you... love you all too much."

Brook grabbed the hand floating towards his face, immediately wincing at the state of the broken fingers. "Hey hey, don't talk, just hold on, ambulance is on its way, you're gonna be okay."

"M'sorry, so sorry, And... Andy hates me, you all hate me, m'sorry..." As Rye trailed off, Brook could feel his consciousness slipping, his boyfriend becoming a heavier weight across his lap.

"No, no no no, Rye no come on, stay awake. You've got to stay awake for me, no sleeping yet! Rye!"

Hauling the limp body closer, Brook felt the tears rushing down his face. He cuddled the older boy tightly and made sure he could feel Rye's faint thready pulse as best he could. 

"Rye please, please don't leave me! I need you, we all need you. We love you! Please Rye, come on, don't leave me, don't! Please please Rye, baby, Bee, sweetheart, babe, Rye please!"

Brook was sobbing now, barely registering when the paramedics burst into the locker room along with the head of PE and the headteacher. He was gently ushered away, his phone pressed into his hand so he wouldn't forget it.

"Brook, Brooklyn."

The boy finally looked away from Rye as Coach Smith called his name.

"Do you know who did this to Rye?"

Brook nodded shakily, quickly recapping who he saw leaving the locker room with bloodied knuckles before he found Rye on the floor and locked in the toilets.

"Okay, okay we'll get this sorted, are you okay to go with Rye to the hospital or do you need us to call someone for you?"

Vehemently shaking his head, Brook stuttered out his answer. "I- I'm going with him. I'll call whoever I need to on the way there."

The paramedics signalled they were ready to move Rye to the ambulance and Brook quickly followed after them, racing along to try and grab Rye's hand.

_Hold on, I still want you_

_Come back, I still need you_

_Let me take your hand, I'll make it right_

_I swear to love you, all my life_

_Hold on, I still need you_

_A long endless highway_

_You're silent beside me_

_Driving a nightmare I can't escape from_

_Helplessly praying, the light isn't fading_

_Hiding the shock and the chill in my bones_

The journey in the ambulance was stressful to say the least. Once Rye had been stabilised, the paramedics signalled their driver to head towards the hospital. While one was busying himself checking Rye's vitals, the woman was subtly trying to check on a traumatised Brooklyn.

"Brook was it?"

She received a shaky nod in response.

"Hi Brook, I'm Lizzie, that's Joe and up in the cab is Tom. Joe's making sure Rye's stable but right now I wanna make sure you're okay. Think you can try and talk me through what happened?"

Brook looked up and when he saw no judgement he burst into tears again. "Rye's my boyfriend, well one of them."

He winced but when Lizzie only nodded encouragingly he carried on, "There was a rumour started that Rye was seen kissing one of the popular girls in our year. I didn't believe it but then someone who doesn't even like the girl said it was true and it just rubbed us all the wrong way. We watched the team training like we normally do but when they were going back inside something seemed off between Andy and Rye. We were sat outside so couldn't see anything but after the rest of the team left we could hear Andy screaming at Rye and he basically-"

Brook cut himself off on a sob, "Basically ended it with Rye and told him to leave us all alone, I think he called him a cheater."

Lizzie handed him some tissues, also helping him shift along the bench so he could hold Rye's hand while Joe moved on Rye's other side to assess the damage to his legs.

"Andy stormed out, I don't think I've ever seen him so mad, like ever. He took Sonny and Jack but I wanted to, needed to talk to Rye. So I waited. And waited and waited then after like half an hour three of the footie team came out and it just gave me a bad feeling, then I saw they had blood on their hands and I panicked. I ran in and kicked the door in and then called an ambulance. You know the rest."

Brook went silent after that, staring at Rye's lax face and gently running his thumb over Rye's hand. Lizzie looked over at her partner and the two shared an angry but sympathetic look. Joe shook his head slightly, turning back to inspecting the damage to Rye's legs, noticing the rapidly swelling ankle and mentally adding it to the catalogue of injuries. Lizzie moved to give Brook some privacy but she still caught him wrapping Rye's hand in both of his own, pressing his lips to them gently as he murmured, "Hold on Rye, just hold on please."

As Joe completed the forms necessary for the hospital staff who would no doubt need to rush Rye in for the trauma unit, he couldn't help but observe the two boys. Rye was obviously unconscious, the bleeding from his nose and mouth having stopped but the laceration behind his ear was still a cause for concern. He watched Lizzie wrapping bandages around the worst of the puncture marks on Rye's left calf and again fought down the rage that was threatening to consume him. He looked up as Brook waved a hand at him, giving the clearly still shaken teen a friendly smile.

"Am I okay to use my phone in here?"

"Yeah of course, I'm guessing you've got a few people to call."

"Well I'd missed a few calls and texts before I found him, there's loads now but I was-" Brook swallowed down his stress, "a bit preoccupied, you know?"

Joe nodded sadly and turned back to his notes as a sign to give Brook as much privacy as they could afford in the small space.

Brooklyn quickly pressed call back on Jack's contact, waiting only a fraction of a second before a frantic Irish accent was rambling in his ear.

" _Oh my god Brooklyn what the fuck are you playing at?! We thought you were just gonna talk to Rye and then come round Andy's like always! Where are you? Are you okay? Did Rye do anything or say anything? Do you know how worried we are right now, you told Sonny you'd be quick and guess what it's been ages! Where the fuck are you?!_"

Brook held the phone away from his ear after Jack's first question, the volume far too extreme for him to hold it close. He let Jack carry on, also hearing Sonny and Andy in the background asking where he was and if he was okay. He let out a heavy sigh, feeling himself tearing up again before he snapped back at them, "Shut up so I can answer you! Get your arses on the way to the hospital. Now."

He ended the call, switching his phone to silent and stuffing it back in his pocket, attention immediately back on Rye. 

_They took you away on a table_

_I pace back and forth as you lay still_

_They pull you in to feel your heartbeat_

_Can you hear me screaming please don't leave me?_

By some twist of fate, although Jack and Andy's slightly green faces gave a clue as to how, the other three boys arrived at the hospital in time to witness two more paramedics swarm the ambulance which Brook hopped out of. They all took a step towards Brook, wanting nothing more than to make sure he was okay and ask  _why the fuck he'd been in an ambulance_ but they were brought up short when Brook just latched onto the hand of the person on the backboard being transferred to another stretcher by the medical team.

They hung back out of the way, watching in shock as it was Rye who was wheeled past them and into the emergency unit of the hospital, Brook running alongside him surrounded by nurses and the paramedics who came out of the ambulance.

It wasn't until they made it into the hospital that they saw their blonde boyfriend on his knees in the middle of the room, sobbing into his hands as Rye disappeared through a set of double doors. Sonny was the first to reach him, scooping Brook onto his lap and gripping him tightly. Andy and Jack both crashed down beside them, wrapping their arms around Sonny and Brook where they could. Tears immediately fell and soaked the shoulders of t-shirts and hoodies.

Joe and Lizzie handed over their reports to the nurse's station, Joe's notes already having been taken by the trauma doctor through the doors with Rye. The paramedics turned and saw the huddle of boys crying in the middle of the room. Lizzie's heart aches for them, it was clear how much they meant to one another. She turned to the nurse behind the desk, asking if there was a private waiting room they could let the boys have for privacy. The older woman nodded and her eyes softened immediately as she left to make sure the room was free. Lizzie smiled after her, gesturing with Joe to collect the boys.

"Brook?"

Looking up at his name, Brook offered a watery smile to the kind paramedics who'd helped Rye.

"Hi Lizzie, hi Joe. Guys these are the people who helped when I found Rye."

Jack and Andy nodded in greeting, Sonny looking up with teary blue-hazel eyes asking, "Is he gonna be okay?"

Joe grimaced, having expected the question but not wanting to answer, "He's in the best hands he can be in right now. I won't lie to you, there was a lot of damage done and there is a lot of concern over possible internal bleeding and the head wound he sustained. I'm hopeful though."

Sonny nodded, appreciative of the honesty instead of false hope. He looked over as the nurse from the desk came back, tapping Lizzie on the shoulder and gesturing with her head.

"We'll get you set up in a family waiting room, it's a bit more private than here and there's free tea and coffee and I'm sure we can get you boys some biscuits while you wait. It's gonna take a while for them to come back out with any news, might as well get you comfortable." The older woman smiled kindly at the boys, taking in the tear streaked faces staring back at her. She received a few nods and watched as they slowly stood up, helping one another as they stumbled slightly.

Joe and Lizzie said their goodbyes, both accepting the grateful hug from Brook and the message to thank Tom as well before they left to clean up the mess in the back of their ambulance.

Following the older nurse, the four boys held onto each others' hands tightly. Settling in the waiting room, they could just about hear the bustling behind the trauma ward doors just down the corridor from them. They each felt sick knowing that their Rye was behind those doors. Jack stood up to pace, wanting to burn off the nervous energy thrumming through him. Stopping next to the coffee machine, he was about to ask if anyone wanted anything when the sight of the tea bags broke him. Rye loved tea, said it could fix anything.

Andy saw Jack freeze next to the coffee machine, his back blocking whatever it was he was fixated on. Seeing that Sonny had Brook wrapped in a hug, he went over and felt a lump rise in his throat when he saw what Jack was staring at. '_Tea fixes everything Andy._' Rye had said to him once, face serious but eyes twinkling with something that was just Rye. Leading Jack to sit down on the chairs that were only marginally more comfortable than the standard waiting room seats, Andy idly wondered if tea could fix them now. His phone vibrating in his pocket distracted him and he checked it. A text from Rye's mum. Tears clouded his vision yet again at the thought of having to tell Rye's mum, who was like a mum to all of them at this point, what had happened to her boy, their boy.

Brook had pulled away from Sonny, anxiously pacing around the room. He pulled at his hair lightly, still coming to terms with what he'd seen in the locker room. He wanted to scream, to break something, trash the room, find the idiots that had thought a three against one fight was remotely fair and show them what happened when you messed with someone who belonged to him. He sighed, feeling the tears building in his eyes again. He could hear Jack crying quietly against Andy, the keyboard clicks of Andy's phone too loud in the quiet of the waiting room. He picked up the pacing again, completing god knew how many more laps before he felt someone grab his wrist. Looking up into blue-hazel eyes, the lighting making them appear a brown so much like the one person's he really wanted to see right now but so different at the same time, he couldn't stop the sob that escaped him. He felt himself be folded into a warm embrace, burying his face against Sonny's chest and just letting out all of the stress and frustration and fear of the past few hours. Before Brook knew it he was tucked against Andy's other side, quietly reading through the text conversation between Andy and Rye's mum and appreciating how lucky he was to have the support around him.

All was calm for a moment before a machine started screaming on the other side of the double doors. The four boys shot out into the corridor, watching in horror as between the gap from new medical staff rushing into the room they could see Rye seizing on a medical bed before the monitor next to him flatlined. A new panic rushed through the room as doctors and nurses bustled around one another, comments of defibrillators and prepping the OR being thrown around.

Andy collapsed to his knees, dragging Sonny down with him as Brook and Jack still stood shellshocked. The tears were renewed and Andy felt his throat grow hoarse. It wasn't until Jack would comment later that he found out he'd been screaming Rye's name, begging him to not leave them and to just hold on.

_Hold on, I still want you_

_Come back, I still need you_

_Let me take your hand, I'll make it right_

_I swear to love you, all my life_

_Hold on, I still need you_

Several hours later a doctor clad in green scrubs knocked on the door to the waiting area. She brushed her hair back from her forehead, a grim look on her face as she took in the four boys sprawled across the chairs like sofas. Three were still asleep, who she presumed was the oldest was now staring at her, hope and despair evident in glassy blue eyes. He stood up, slowly making his way towards her so as to not to wake the others who had finally cried themselves to sleep.

"I'm Dr. Meredith Henderson, you all came in with Ryan Beaumont, yeah?"

Andy nodded shakily. "Is he... Is he okay? Wait that's a stupid question, is he going to be okay?"

Dr. Henderson ran her hand through her hair again. "He's stable. That's the first step, keeping him that way. I'll be honest with you, it was touch and go at one point and we almost lost him. He had to have emergency surgery to stop some internal bleeding which had caused his body to go into shock."

"Is that why we heard that machine's alarm go off?"

Meredith closed her eyes briefly before looking back at the blonde boy, "You all heard that? I'm sorry, that can't have been easy. But yes, that's what the machine screaming was about. Do you want to wake the others so I can go through what we've diagnosed and treated?"

Andy shook his head, glancing behind him at his boyfriends all still sleeping fitfully. "They need to rest, I'll fill them in on the easy to hear bits later. How... How bad was the damage?"

Meredith indicated Andy to follow her outside the room and down the hallway to a small office. Taking a seat on the sofa, she waited until the teen had sat down before explaining what they'd found. "Aside from the internal bleeding, most of Ryan's injuries are superficial. He sustained two broken ribs with another 5 heavily bruised but luckily not fractured. Bruising pretty much all over, a torn ligament in his right ankle. We've stitched a few of the deeper puncture marks in each of his legs, from what the paramedic notes said they assumed they were from studded football boots. There's some muscle damage but hopefully nothing rest and some physical therapy won't be able to correct."

Andy paled at that, he'd been caught in a nasty tackle before and it was not enjoyable. To know that someone had purposely dug those studs into Rye's legs made him feel sick.

"There was some bruising around his arms, we assumed from being restrained, similar bruising around his throat but luckily nothing more than light tissue damage and his airway wasn't compromised enough for anything lasting. His left hand has three broken fingers and several hairline fractures to the metacarpals in his hand. Broken nose, heavily bruised jaw, hairline fracture to his brow bone, a few lacerations on his nose, forehead and chin needed stitches but not many."

Dr. Henderson watched as Andy looked up at the ceiling momentarily, a heavy sigh escaping him as he ran his hands through his hair and down his face. She gave him another few moments to process what she was telling him before tackling the most serious subject.

"Our main concern was the laceration to his head. It required 19 stitches but it's the swelling in his brain that we're more worried about. The scans showed nothing abnormal aside from the inflammation, thankfully no major bleeds, but until that goes down and we're able to do some more tests we've got him in an induced coma to help his body start to heal. He wasn't conscious through any of our initial assessments so we don't fully know the extent but hopefully once he comes round we can make sure everything is okay. I know it doesn't sound like it, but the prognosis for now is good. We just need to be patient."

Andy nodded for what felt like the hundredth time. He knew that this was the best place for Rye to be right now but that didn't make it any easier. Especially not with the last words he'd said to Rye playing on his mind. Part of him was still so angry, but it was now aimed primarily at himself for not even giving Rye the chance to explain, or defend himself. The other part was consumed by overwhelming guilt. He wiped his hands over his face again, thanking the doctor before asking the most important question, "Can we see him?"

Meredith smiled softly, "I'll get a nurse to show you his room once he's set up. Normally we wouldn't let anyone stay past visiting hours but as long as you boys don't cause any issues I think I can turn a blind eye this once. You've all been waiting long enough."

Andy smiled back gratefully and left to go back to his boys. When he returned to the waiting room, Sonny was awake and in the middle of covering a snuggled together Brook and Jack in discarded hoodies. He watched the taller boy in silence, waiting for Sonny to notice him rather than announce his presence. When the younger boy spotted him, he opened his arms and let Sonny take comfort instead of taking on the mantle Rye usually took. 

"Where'd you go Fovvs?" Sonny murmured against his shoulder where he'd tucked his face against Andy's neck.

"Doctor came to talk to us but you guys looked so tired I said I'd fill you in."

"What'd she say? Is he gonna be okay?"

"Shit Sonny, he's so broken. They kicked the shit out of him, studded his legs, tried to strangle him, they broke his ribs and his nose. They've had to put him in a coma to help him heal because there's swelling in his brain." 

Sonny stared at him in shock before snatching him back into a tight hug, a few shaky breaths escaping him as he absorbed what Andy had told him. "Can we see him?"

"A nurse is gonna get us when he's settled in a room."

The dark haired boy nodded, pressing his face back against Andy's neck. From his position, he could hear Jack and Brook shifting around but it didn't sound like they'd woken up.

"I don't know if I'll be able to look at him like that Fovvs." Sonny confessed quietly. "It'll break my heart, especially with how we left things. I can't believe we fed into a rumour before even talking to Rye properly about it. I can't believe we even considered that he'd cheat on us."

Andy swallowed down the guilt rising in his throat. "I know, I know. We've got a lot to apologise for. Me especially, god Sonny if you'd heard everything I said to him..."

Tears overwhelmed him once again and Sonny reversed their positions, sitting down and pulling Andy into his lap.

"I called him a flirt and a cheat, told him to stop playing innocent. I told him to fuck off and leave us alone, I practically broke up with him for nothing and now this has happened, and I just, I can't, I need him to be okay, he has to be, I need to-"

The sobs pouring out of the oldest lad broke Sonny's heart further. He pulled Andy closer, doing his best to hold him together while he broke down completely. Rustling caught his attention and he saw Jack staring at the two of them. Offering the most reassuring smile he could muster, he gestured for the Irish boy to come sit by them. As Jack got to his feet, there was a knock at the door and they all looked over to see the kind nurse who originally showed them to the waiting room standing in the doorway.

"You can come with me and see your boy now."

Not needing to be told twice, Andy shot from Sonny's lap and followed immediately after her. Jack was right behind Andy, leaving Sonny to wake Brook carefully so he could also see Rye before trying to get more rest. Trailing behind slightly, the two boys were confused to see Jack waiting outside the room they'd been told Rye was in.

"Andy said he just wanted a minute alone with him. Figured he needed it."

_I don't wanna let go_

_I know I'm not that strong_

_I just wanna hear you_

_Saying "Baby let's go home."_

_Let's go home_

_Yeah I just wanna take you home_

Inside Rye's room, Andy was fighting down nausea. Hearing about the injuries and seeing them were totally different things. Rye looked so much worse than he'd imagined. The blood was gone but the stitches were ugly and stood out starkly against the unnatural pallor of Rye's normally tanned skin. The bruising around his neck had fully come out, the dark purple line across his throat momentarily stealing Andy's own breath. He couldn't see the bandages covering Rye's legs, a soft looking blanket pulled halfway up to his chest.

Sitting in the comfiest chair of the whole evening, he carefully took hold of Rye's undamaged hand, thumb unconsciously running over his knuckles in time with the soft beeping of the heart monitor above the bed. Andy used his free hand to brush some hair back from Rye's forehead before wiping away some more tears.

"Where do I even start? I guess sorry is as good a place as any. I don't even know if you can hear me but Rye, I'm so sorry. I should've never let that get to me the way it did, and I definitely shouldn't have gone off on you like that. I didn't even let you say anything, just accused you like it was nothing and for that I'm so sorry. God I'm sorry. I think I'm going to be saying sorry to you at least ten times a day for the next ten years for this."

A wet laugh escaped him, more tears flowing freely. "Remember how you said tea fixes everything? You looked so serious as you said it and I believed you. I'm gonna make you so much tea when you wake up. And you will wake up, I'm not letting you go, not because of a stupid rumour, not because of me being an idiot, not ever. You're mine Rye Beaumont, you hear me? I'm not strong enough on my own, I need my Bee to get me through this, to get all of us through this. So you better wake up so we can go home yeah?"

Pressing a gentle kiss to the back of Rye's hand, Andy rested his forehead against his clasped hands. He murmured softly, "I just wanna take you home. I love you so much, we all love you, we'll get through this."

Brook entered the room slowly, gaining confidence as Andy looked up at him. He took the seat on the opposite side of the bed, watching as Sonny and Jack claimed the sofa against the window. Checking the time, Brook sighed as he saw how late it now was. He'd texted Rye's mum, filling her in on everything he knew, and appreciating her updating him on the school's progress with bringing in Rye's attackers. The police were now involved and the three boys would be spending their time in custody until Rye was awake and able to make a statement. He looked over at his three conscious boyfriends and rested his hand on Rye's arm where he wouldn't touch his injured hand.

"You guys can sleep if you want, I'll take first watch."

"You sure Brook? You've had a really stressful day." Jack bit his lip, he was tired sure but he could only imagine how Brooklyn was feeling, considering he'd been the one to find Rye.

"Yeah, I don't think I'm gonna be sleeping for a while, you guys rest and we can take turns."

Andy gestured for Brook to swap seats with him, "You can hold this hand."

The younger boy smiled gratefully, finding two spare blankets behind his chair as he stood. He wrapped one around his shoulders, passing the other to Andy so the three of themcould cuddle up on the sofa and stay warm. Sitting back down into the chair closest to the bed, Brook slipped his hand into Rye's and interlocked their fingers. He settled in for a long night of waiting.

_Hold on, I still want you_

_Come back, I still need you_


End file.
